Here Comes the Stuff

So here we go.

Our first look at the merchandise which will accompany the 1929 throwback uniforms.

My first thought was "Acme Packers"? The Acme Packing Company was long removed from the picture by 1929.

Since there wasn't anything particularly noteworthy for the sideline apparel from that 1929 season, the team focused in on the Acme Packers, the nickname of the club in 1921-22, to draw on the first decade of the team's existence.

"We wanted to give it an old-time, weathered look," (said Kate Hogan, the Packers director of retail operations). "It's really about picking up the colors and what one would say has a 'vintage' feel to it. We really tried to think about what people would like, what they would enjoy. That's what we try and do. We want to make sure our designs keep in mind what our fans would be looking for."

Ugh. Not a big fan. I don't mind updating the 1929 uniform to meet the NFL's current equipment regulations, but what's the point of mixing and matching from opposite ends of the decade? It's not as though the Packers needed some excuse to sell Acme Packers merchandise.

I would also take issue with the notion that "there wasn't anything particularly noteworthy for the sideline apparel from that 1929 season". The '29 Packers wore these sharp pullover jackets, which would translate very well into hooded sweatshirts for retail:

I also have a hard time visualizing Mike McCarthy wearing the "old-time, weathered look" on the sidelines:

I do like the leather helmet graphic, though.

So there you have it. Merchandise goes on sale soon.

We also learned more about when the Packers will be wearing the throwback uniforms:

NFL teams are allowed to have a third jersey that they can wear for up to three games per season (no more than two home games) for a five-year period. Packers President/CEO Mark Murphy said last month that the team will wear it for home games only, for one or possibly two games in 2010, with future use to be evaluated.

And about the design process itself:

The Packers first began the process of working toward a third jersey more than a year ago. After first submitting its interest in doing so to the league, the team began to work with the NFL on a couple of different options. Hogan said the league put in a great deal of time and effort to assist the Packers with designs, looking through not only what archives the team had but also those at the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (emphasis mine)

Really? Couldn't tell by looking at it, unless they the archive search was ultimately fruitness in helping them find anything distinctive enough to sell. I don't really mind them wanting to jazz up the new sideline and retail gear with a contemporary flair (which is essentially what they did with the throwback uniforms), but linking them to the Acme Packers is odd. It's as though that's going to be the umbrella title for all blue-and-gold from now on out, which is extremely misleading at best.

Finally, this little peek at what might have been:

Hogan said that two of the (proposed uniform designs) were historical ones that were re-creations of uniforms worn in the past, while another was what the league refers to as an 'alternate color' version. Since Green Bay wears green and white jerseys, that alternate jersey would have been a gold one.

Hmm. Dodged a bullet there, I think.

But really, for a team with so much glorious history, the Packers have a terribly slapdash approach to honoring it.

They couldn't even use an appropriate font?